Fear Not in the Storms

 

Our hearts, love and prayers go out to all those affected by Hurricanes Helene and Milton, for God's protection, provision, mercy, love and grace. May God use these storms to draw us closer to Himself: believers by strengthening our faith in and dependence on Him, and nonbelievers by leading them to seek His face. My favorite verse for God's protection is Isaiah 41:10 Fear thou not, for I am with thee; be not dismayed, for I am thy God; I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee by the right hand of my righteousness.

A friend recently posted on Facebook that FEAR has two meanings: Forget Everything And Run, or Face Everything And Rise. To these I added my own anagram, Faith Endures All Resistance!

When the storms of life come pounding on our front door, we may be tempted to sneak out the back way and flee, not realizing that we are putting ourselves in even worse danger. But Jesus Christ allows us to confront and stand fast in the storms (1 Corinthians 16:13; Philippians 4:1; 1 Thessalonians 3:7-8), sailing above the turmoil to heavenly places with Him (Ephesians 1:3; 2:6). He is our Rock and Tower in Whom we have refuge (2 Samuel 22:3; Psalm 18:20, for His strength is made perfect in our weakness; His grace is sufficient (2 Corinthians 12:9); and His perfect love casts out all fear (1 John 4:18). 

This is true only if we have placed our faith in His death, burial and resurrection (1 Corinthians 15:1-4) as the only Way to Heaven (John 14:6), turned away from our sins (Acts 3:19; 26:20; 2 Timothy 2:25), and asked Him into our heart (Acts 8:37; Romans 10:9-10). Then we are saved by His grace through our faith (Ephesians 2:8-9), which allows us to do all things and endure all trials through Christ Who strengthens us (Philippians 4:13). Without Him, we can do nothing (John 15:5), but with Him, all things are possible (Matthew 19:26).

The Bible has many excellent examples of faith overcoming fear in the storm. By faith, Peter left his ship in the storm and walked on the water to meet Jesus, sinking only when his gaze left his Lord and focused instead on the billowing waves below. Yet even in Peter's failure to keep the faith, Jesus rescued him (Matthew 14:24-32), and He will do the same for us when our faith falters (Matthew 17:20; Mark 9:24). 

The disciples caught in the storm, with Jesus seemingly asleep at the helm, panicked as the sea was about to engulf them. They cried out to Jesus, not so much for salvation as to berate Him for not caring about them! Yet He rose above it all, calmly telling the winds to be still, bringing peace not only to the waves but to the hearts of His disciples who seemingly had lost faith (Mark 4:37-41). 

Praise God that He knows all our weaknesses, fears and doubts, yet loves, saves and protects us anyway! (Psalm 8:4; 139) He allows us to go through such storms, brought on by Satan who is the prince of the power of the air (Ephesians 2:2), because they strengthen our faith in and reliance on Him. Time after time God proves Himself faithful (1 Corinthians 1:9; 10:13), yet our sin nature still questions, doubts, and fears.  

The apostle Paul was no stranger to storms, both figuratively and literally, having been nearly drowned, as well as shipwrecked three times (2 Corinthians 11:25). Paul, like the rest of us, struggled with the weaknesses of his flesh and sin nature (Romans 7:14-24) to the point that he knew he had to die daily (1 Corinthians 15:31) to these if God were to use him for His glory. 

Yet God faithfully worked all these disasters together for good (Romans 8:28)  to use Paul to spread the Gospel throughout Gentile nations (Romans 1:13-16). When Paul was arrested in Caesarea, he used his Roman citizenship to request an audience before Caesar himself in Rome, and Festus granted it (Acts 25). 

God can use even pagans to accomplish his purpose, and here He used Festus to book Paul’s passage to Rome, the center of the empire and a key mission field where Paul would have a great opportunity to witness (Acts 27-1-2). True, he would have to travel as a prisoner, and endure storms, shipwreck, and other dangers along the way, but God was the unseen Captain charting the voyage. 

Evidently through his good character, behavior, and Christian witness, Paul had sufficiently impressed Julius, his prison guard, that he could be trusted, so Julius let Paul visit his friends in Sidon when they landed there (Acts 27-3). What a welcome, yet unexpected, blessing from God, extended to Paul while he was a prisoner!  

Contrary winds as they left Sidon changed their course to Myra in Lycia. Yet had it not been for this detour, they may not have immediately found a ship going to Italy once they landed (Acts 27-4-6). God allowed the storm to direct their path to work things out with His perfect timing, reminding us that sometimes the storms of life do the same for us by keeping us out of even deeper trouble.  

Another storm led them to the pleasant harbor of Fair Havens. Despite Paul’s warning, they stayed there so long that another storm was brewing, and it would be dangerous sailing (Acts 27-7-9). We enjoy the peaceful times when all seems to be well, but sometimes these unchallenging circumstances allow us to get lazy and linger too long in leisure rather than pressing on with the journey God has set for us. 

King David fell into that trap when he took some time off after battle to relax at home instead of training with the troops. His idleness led to lust as he allowed himself to gaze at beautiful Bathsheba while she was bathing, then his lust resulted in adultery, deception and ultimately murder (2 Samuel 11:1-17). Far better to undergo the hard times God has planned for our own good than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season (Hebrews 11:25) and suffer the consequences (Romans 6:23; 7:5; James 1:15). 

God Himself had told Paul that sailing so late from Fair Havens would damage the cargo and ship and even the risk the lives of the sailors and prisoners. But the guard of the prisoners did not believe Paul and instead believed the ship’s captain who said it was fine to sail, most likely ignoring the.financial motive of the captain who wanted to book passengers on his ship (Acts 27-10-11). 

How often do we make a similar mistake, listening to advice from our worldly friends instead of Godly counsel inspired by the Holy Spirit? God graciously speaks to us through such advice from fellow believers (Proverbs 27:17; Psalm 37:30), as well as through prayer and His Word (Psalm 119:105), and we ignore His guidance at our own peril. 

Following the world, like sin itself, can bring pleasure for a season before it turns deadly (Romans 12:2). As they embarked from Fair Havens, they had a gentle wind and good sailing at first, but a storm brewed and then raged so that they could not even steer the ship and had to go wherever the waves carried them (Acts 27-12-14). Sometimes God lets us go through storms that are so severe that we have to give up control and trust Him completely. 

They washed ashore on the island of Clauda where they tried to repair the ship, but there was quicksand on the island and they had to set sail again in a hurry to avoid getting stuck (Acts 27-16-17). When we fail to heed God’s counsel, it seems that dangers attack us from all sides and force hasty retreat (Proverbs 22:3,12). 

The next day the storm was so bad that the sailors had to toss out some of the cargo to make the ship lighter so it wouldn’t sink. On the third day the storm battered the ship so violently that they even had to start tearing down and throwing out some of the ship’s rigging (Acts 27-18-19). When God lets us go through storms, it makes us realize that we have to let go of some things we thought were important but are actually weighing us down, and focus only on Him (Matthew 6:19-21; Hebrews 12:1). Thank God that He is all we need! 

Not only was the storm terrible, but they had not even seen the sun or stars for many days because of the clouds. The sky gets darkest just before dawn in our spiritual life as well as in the natural universe, and everyone in the ship, except for Paul, had lost hope (Acts 27-20). But Jesus is the bright Morning Star (Revelation 22:16), and He had a plan. 

God used this storm to give Paul a chance to witness to the others on board. He had tried to warn them, because God had told him about the danger ahead, but they had not listened. Now they were so desperate that he definitely had their attention! As the saying goes, there are no atheists in foxholes, and God may allow the unsaved to reach the brink of death before they take Him seriously (Psalm 40:2). 

An angel of God had told Paul that no one would die in the storm, and that God’s mission for Paul to witness to Caesar would be fulfilled. Paul told his fellow passengers of his faith and God’s faithfulness. It is not easy to witness, especially in a life-threatening situation with strangers and even enemies, but God gave Paul courage to do it, and He will do the same for us if we ask Him. God had allowed the sailors to lose their cargo and suffer damage to the ship, but all their lives would be saved (Acts 27-21-24). If they believed the good news about Jesus that Paul shared with them, they would live forever, so they lost worldly possessions but gained the most precious treasure of eternal salvation! (Matthew 13:46; Mark 8:35). 

If we look back on our own lives, we will see many times when storms strengthened our faith and gave us unexpected opportunities to witness, just as they did for Paul. God used these storms to enlarge Paul’s mission field where he could spread the Gospel of grace!  

Prayers for all in the path of Dorian, for safety and peace, and for all those in the Bahamas and other stricken areas, for safety, comfort, peace, faith, and to be able to rebuild and bring others to Him as their own faith is strengthened.

© 2015 Laurie Collett

Edited and reposted from the archives 

 

Fear Not in the Storms

 

In this time of pandemic, civil unrest, political division, conflict, severe weather, drought and famine affecting many parts of the globe, we may feel that we have have reason to be fearful. Yet the Bible commands us to "Fear not!" 365 times, one for each day of the year! I therefore thought this might be an appropriate time to repost this from the archives. 

 

A friend once posted on Facebook that FEAR has two meanings: Forget Everything And Run, or Face Everything And Rise. To these I added my own anagram, Faith Endures All Resistance!

When the storms of life come pounding on our front door, we may be tempted to sneak out the back way and flee, not realizing that we are putting ourselves in even worse danger. But Jesus Christ allows us to confront and stand fast in the storms (1 Corinthians 16:13; Philippians 4:1; 1 Thessalonians 3:7-8), sailing above the turmoil to heavenly places with Him (Ephesians 1:3; 2:6). He is our Rock and Tower in Whom we have refuge (2 Samuel 22:3; Psalm 18:20, for His strength is made perfect in our weakness; His grace is sufficient (2 Corinthians 12:9); and His perfect love casts out all fear (1 John 4:18). 

This is true only if we have placed our faith in His death, burial and resurrection (1 Corinthians 15:1-4) as the only Way to Heaven (John 14:6), turned away from our sins (Acts 3:19; 26:20; 2 Timothy 2:25), and asked Him into our heart (Acts 8:37; Romans 10:9-10). Then we are saved by His grace through our faith (Ephesians 2:8-9), which allows us to do all things and endure all trials through Christ Who strengthens us (Philippians 4:13). Without Him, we can do nothing (John 15:5), but with Him, all things are possible (Matthew 19:26). 

The Bible has many excellent examples of faith overcoming fear in the storm. By faith, Peter left his ship in the storm and walked on the water to meet Jesus, sinking only when his gaze left his Lord and focused instead on the billowing waves below. Yet even in Peter's failure to keep the faith, Jesus rescued him (Matthew 14:24-32), and He will do the same for us when our faith falters (Matthew 17:20; Mark 9:24). 

The disciples caught in the storm, with Jesus seemingly asleep at the helm, panicked as the sea was about to engulf them. They cried out to Jesus, not so much for salvation as to berate Him for not caring about them! Yet He rose above it all, calmly telling the winds to be still, bringing peace not only to the waves but to the hearts of His disciples who seemingly had lost faith (Mark 4:37-41). 

Praise God that He knows all our weaknesses, fears and doubts, yet loves, saves and protects us anyway! (Psalm 8:4; 139) He allows us to go through such storms, brought on by Satan who is the prince of the power of the air (Ephesians 2:2), because they strengthen our faith in and reliance on Him. Time after time God proves Himself faithful (1 Corinthians 1:9; 10:13), yet our sin nature still questions, doubts, and fears. 

The apostle Paul was no stranger to storms, both figuratively and literally, having been nearly drowned, as well as shipwrecked three times (2 Corinthians 11:25). Paul, like the rest of us, struggled with the weaknesses of his flesh and sin nature (Romans 7:14-24) to the point that he knew he had to die daily (1 Corinthians 15:31) to these if God were to use him for His glory. 

Yet God faithfully worked all these disasters together for good (Romans 8:28)  to use Paul to spread the Gospel throughout Gentile nations (Romans 1:13-16). When Paul was arrested in Caesarea, he used his Roman citizenship to request an audience before Caesar himself in Rome, and Festus granted it (Acts 25). 

God can use even pagans to accomplish his purpose, and here He used Festus to book Paul’s passage to Rome, the center of the empire and a key mission field where Paul would have a great opportunity to witness (Acts 27-1-2). True, he would have to travel as a prisoner, and endure storms, shipwreck, and other dangers along the way, but God was the unseen Captain charting the voyage. 

Evidently through his good character, behavior, and Christian witness, Paul had sufficiently impressed Julius, his prison guard, that he could be trusted, so Julius let Paul visit his friends in Sidon when they landed there (Acts 27-3). What a welcome, yet unexpected, blessing from God, extended to Paul while he was a prisoner! 

Contrary winds as they left Sidon changed their course to Myra in Lycia. Yet had it not been for this detour, they may not have immediately found a ship going to Italy once they landed (Acts 27-4-6). God allowed the storm to direct their path to work things out with His perfect timing, reminding us that sometimes the storms of life do the same for us by keeping us out of even deeper trouble. 

Another storm led them to the pleasant harbor of Fair Havens. Despite Paul’s warning, they stayed there so long that another storm was brewing, and it would be dangerous sailing (Acts 27-7-9). We enjoy the peaceful times when all seems to be well, but sometimes these unchallenging circumstances allow us to get lazy and linger too long in leisure rather than pressing on with the journey God has set for us. 

King David fell into that trap when he took some time off after battle to relax at home instead of training with the troops. His idleness led to lust as he allowed himself to gaze at beautiful Bathsheba while she was bathing, then his lust resulted in adultery, deception and ultimately murder (2 Samuel 11:1-17). Far better to undergo the hard times God has planned for our own good than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season (Hebrews 11:25) and suffer the consequences (Romans 6:23; 7:5; James 1:15). 

God Himself had told Paul that sailing so late from Fair Havens would damage the cargo and ship and even the risk the lives of the sailors and prisoners. But the guard of the prisoners did not believe Paul and instead believed the ship’s captain who said it was fine to sail, most likely ignoring the.financial motive of the captain who wanted to book passengers on his ship (Acts 27-10-11). 

How often do we make a similar mistake, listening to advice from our worldly friends instead of Godly counsel inspired by the Holy Spirit? God graciously speaks to us through such advice from fellow believers (Proverbs 27:17; Psalm 37:30), as well as through prayer and His Word (Psalm 119:105), and we ignore His guidance at our own peril. 

Following the world, like sin itself, can bring pleasure for a season before it turns deadly (Romans 12:2). As they embarked from Fair Havens, they had a gentle wind and good sailing at first, but a storm brewed and then raged so that they could not even steer the ship and had to go wherever the waves carried them (Acts 27-12-14). Sometimes God lets us go through storms that are so severe that we have to give up control and trust Him completely. 

They washed ashore on the island of Clauda where they tried to repair the ship, but there was quicksand on the island and they had to set sail again in a hurry to avoid getting stuck (Acts 27-16-17). When we fail to heed God’s counsel, it seems that dangers attack us from all sides and force hasty retreat (Proverbs 22:3,12). 

The next day the storm was so bad that the sailors had to toss out some of the cargo to make the ship lighter so it wouldn’t sink. On the third day the storm battered the ship so violently that they even had to start tearing down and throwing out some of the ship’s rigging (Acts 27-18-19). When God lets us go through storms, it makes us realize that we have to let go of some things we thought were important but are actually weighing us down, and focus only on Him (Matthew 6:19-21; Hebrews 12:1). Thank God that He is all we need! 

Not only was the storm terrible, but they had not even seen the sun or stars for many days because of the clouds. The sky gets darkest just before dawn in our spiritual life as well as in the natural universe, and everyone in the ship, except for Paul, had lost hope (Acts 27-20). But Jesus is the bright Morning Star (Revelation 22:16), and He had a plan. 

God used this storm to give Paul a chance to witness to the others on board. He had tried to warn them, because God had told him about the danger ahead, but they had not listened. Now they were so desperate that he definitely had their attention! As the saying goes, there are no atheists in foxholes, and God may allow the unsaved to reach the brink of death before they take Him seriously (Psalm 40:2). 

An angel of God had told Paul that no one would die in the storm, and that God’s mission for Paul to witness to Caesar would be fulfilled. Paul told his fellow passengers of his faith and God’s faithfulness. It is not easy to witness, especially in a life-threatening situation with strangers and even enemies, but God gave Paul courage to do it, and He will do the same for us if we ask Him. 

God had allowed the sailors to lose their cargo and suffer damage to the ship, but all their lives would be saved (Acts 27-21-24). If they believed the good news about Jesus that Paul shared with them, they would live forever, so they lost worldly possessions but gained the most precious treasure of eternal salvation! (Matthew 13:46; Mark 8:35).

If we look back on our own lives, we will see many times when storms strengthened our faith and gave us unexpected opportunities to witness, just as they did for Paul. God used these storms to enlarge Paul’s mission field where he could spread the Gospel of grace, and He can do the same for us!

© 2015 Laurie Collett

Reposted from the archives

Fear Not in the Storms

A friend recently posted on Facebook that FEAR has two meanings: Forget Everything And Run, or Face Everything And Rise. To these I added my own anagram, Faith Endures All Resistance!

When the storms of life come pounding on our front door, we may be tempted to sneak out the back way and flee, not realizing that we are putting ourselves in even worse danger. But Jesus Christ allows us to confront and stand fast in the storms (1 Corinthians 16:13; Philippians 4:1; 1 Thessalonians 3:7-8), sailing above the turmoil to heavenly places with Him (Ephesians 1:3; 2:6). He is our Rock and Tower in Whom we have refuge (2 Samuel 22:3; Psalm 18:20, for His strength is made perfect in our weakness; His grace is sufficient (2 Corinthians 12:9); and His perfect love casts out all fear (1 John 4:18). 

This is true only if we have placed our faith in His death, burial and resurrection (1 Corinthians 15:1-4) as the only Way to Heaven (John 14:6), turned away from our sins (Acts 3:19; 26:20; 2 Timothy 2:25), and asked Him into our heart (Acts 8:37; Romans 10:9-10). Then we are saved by His grace through our faith (Ephesians 2:8-9), which allows us to do all things and endure all trials through Christ Who strengthens us (Philippians 4:13). Without Him, we can do nothing (John 15:5), but with Him, all things are possible (Matthew 19:26).

The Bible has many excellent examples of faith overcoming fear in the storm. By faith, Peter left his ship in the storm and walked on the water to meet Jesus, sinking only when his gaze left his Lord and focused instead on the billowing waves below. Yet even in Peter's failure to keep the faith, Jesus rescued him (Matthew 14:24-32), and He will do the same for us when our faith falters (Matthew 17:20; Mark 9:24). 

The disciples caught in the storm, with Jesus seemingly asleep at the helm, panicked as the sea was about to engulf them. They cried out to Jesus, not so much for salvation as to berate Him for not caring about them! Yet He rose above it all, calmly telling the winds to be still, bringing peace not only to the waves but to the hearts of His disciples who seemingly had lost faith (Mark 4:37-41). 

Praise God that He knows all our weaknesses, fears and doubts, yet loves, saves and protects us anyway! (Psalm 8:4; 139) He allows us to go through such storms, brought on by Satan who is the prince of the power of the air (Ephesians 2:2), because they strengthen our faith in and reliance on Him. Time after time God proves Himself faithful (1 Corinthians 1:9; 10:13), yet our sin nature still questions, doubts, and fears.  

The apostle Paul was no stranger to storms, both figuratively and literally, having been nearly drowned, as well as shipwrecked three times (2 Corinthians 11:25). Paul, like the rest of us, struggled with the weaknesses of his flesh and sin nature (Romans 7:14-24) to the point that he knew he had to die daily (1 Corinthians 15:31) to these if God were to use him for His glory. 

Yet God faithfully worked all these disasters together for good (Romans 8:28)  to use Paul to spread the Gospel throughout Gentile nations (Romans 1:13-16). When Paul was arrested in Caesarea, he used his Roman citizenship to request an audience before Caesar himself in Rome, and Festus granted it (Acts 25). 

God can use even pagans to accomplish his purpose, and here He used Festus to book Paul’s passage to Rome, the center of the empire and a key mission field where Paul would have a great opportunity to witness (Acts 27-1-2). True, he would have to travel as a prisoner, and endure storms, shipwreck, and other dangers along the way, but God was the unseen Captain charting the voyage. 

Evidently through his good character, behavior, and Christian witness, Paul had sufficiently impressed Julius, his prison guard, that he could be trusted, so Julius let Paul visit his friends in Sidon when they landed there (Acts 27-3). What a welcome, yet unexpected, blessing from God, extended to Paul while he was a prisoner!  

Contrary winds as they left Sidon changed their course to Myra in Lycia. Yet had it not been for this detour, they may not have immediately found a ship going to Italy once they landed (Acts 27-4-6). God allowed the storm to direct their path to work things out with His perfect timing, reminding us that sometimes the storms of life do the same for us by keeping us out of even deeper trouble.  

Another storm led them to the pleasant harbor of Fair Havens. Despite Paul’s warning, they stayed there so long that another storm was brewing, and it would be dangerous sailing (Acts 27-7-9). We enjoy the peaceful times when all seems to be well, but sometimes these unchallenging circumstances allow us to get lazy and linger too long in leisure rather than pressing on with the journey God has set for us. 

King David fell into that trap when he took some time off after battle to relax at home instead of training with the troops. His idleness led to lust as he allowed himself to gaze at beautiful Bathsheba while she was bathing, then his lust resulted in adultery, deception and ultimately murder (2 Samuel 11:1-17). Far better to undergo the hard times God has planned for our own good than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season (Hebrews 11:25) and suffer the consequences (Romans 6:23; 7:5; James 1:15). 

God Himself had told Paul that sailing so late from Fair Havens would damage the cargo and ship and even the risk the lives of the sailors and prisoners. But the guard of the prisoners did not believe Paul and instead believed the ship’s captain who said it was fine to sail, most likely ignoring the.financial motive of the captain who wanted to book passengers on his ship (Acts 27-10-11). 

How often do we make a similar mistake, listening to advice from our worldly friends instead of Godly counsel inspired by the Holy Spirit? God graciously speaks to us through such advice from fellow believers (Proverbs 27:17; Psalm 37:30), as well as through prayer and His Word (Psalm 119:105), and we ignore His guidance at our own peril. 

Following the world, like sin itself, can bring pleasure for a season before it turns deadly (Romans 12:2). As they embarked from Fair Havens, they had a gentle wind and good sailing at first, but a storm brewed and then raged so that they could not even steer the ship and had to go wherever the waves carried them (Acts 27-12-14). Sometimes God lets us go through storms that are so severe that we have to give up control and trust Him completely. 

They washed ashore on the island of Clauda where they tried to repair the ship, but there was quicksand on the island and they had to set sail again in a hurry to avoid getting stuck (Acts 27-16-17). When we fail to heed God’s counsel, it seems that dangers attack us from all sides and force hasty retreat (Proverbs 22:3,12). 

The next day the storm was so bad that the sailors had to toss out some of the cargo to make the ship lighter so it wouldn’t sink. On the third day the storm battered the ship so violently that they even had to start tearing down and throwing out some of the ship’s rigging (Acts 27-18-19). When God lets us go through storms, it makes us realize that we have to let go of some things we thought were important but are actually weighing us down, and focus only on Him (Matthew 6:19-21; Hebrews 12:1). Thank God that He is all we need! 

Not only was the storm terrible, but they had not even seen the sun or stars for many days because of the clouds. The sky gets darkest just before dawn in our spiritual life as well as in the natural universe, and everyone in the ship, except for Paul, had lost hope (Acts 27-20). But Jesus is the bright Morning Star (Revelation 22:16), and He had a plan. 

God used this storm to give Paul a chance to witness to the others on board. He had tried to warn them, because God had told him about the danger ahead, but they had not listened. Now they were so desperate that he definitely had their attention! As the saying goes, there are no atheists in foxholes, and God may allow the unsaved to reach the brink of death before they take Him seriously (Psalm 40:2). 

An angel of God had told Paul that no one would die in the storm, and that God’s mission for Paul to witness to Caesar would be fulfilled. Paul told his fellow passengers of his faith and God’s faithfulness. It is not easy to witness, especially in a life-threatening situation with strangers and even enemies, but God gave Paul courage to do it, and He will do the same for us if we ask Him. God had allowed the sailors to lose their cargo and suffer damage to the ship, but all their lives would be saved (Acts 27-21-24). If they believed the good news about Jesus that Paul shared with them, they would live forever, so they lost worldly possessions but gained the most precious treasure of eternal salvation! (Matthew 13:46; Mark 8:35). 

If we look back on our own lives, we will see many times when storms strengthened our faith and gave us unexpected opportunities to witness, just as they did for Paul. God used these storms to enlarge Paul’s mission field where he could spread the Gospel of grace!  

Prayers for all in the path of Dorian, for safety and peace, and for all those in the Bahamas and other stricken areas, for safety, comfort, peace, faith, and to be be able to rebuild and bring others to Him as their own faith is strengthened.

© 2015 Laurie Collett

Edited and reposted from the archives 

 

 

 

Storm, Shipwreck and a Snake: Have Faith in God’s Plan!

The Apostle Paul writing his epistles

As we saw last week, the apostle Paul was no stranger to fearful storms, yet God allowed these storms to strengthen his faith and to give him unexpected blessings and opportunities to witness (Acts 27:1-24). With our limited earthly perspective, we view twists, turns, and delays on our journey as setbacks bringing discouragement. But God uses these to spare us from greater harm and to create Divine appointments for our ministry, testimony and witness.

Two weeks into the sea voyage to Rome, where Paul had prayed for an opportunity to witness to Caesar, he and his fellow companions began to draw close to shore. But the dark night kept them from knowing whether they were coming near a safe place to land the boat, or whether they would be smashed against the rocks. So they threw out anchors and waited (Acts 27-27-29). When we don’t have a clear sense of direction from God about what He wants us to do, it is best to be still (Psalm 46:10) and wait until He speaks to us (Isaiah 40:31).

Satan loves to distract us when we are waiting upon the Lord, for he knows that we can draw much power, wisdom, and strengthened faith from that experience. In this case, he used the sailors, who were ready to jump ship and save themselves, leaving the prisoners to die in the boat. But Paul warned them that they all had to stick together, stay on board, and follow God’s plan if they hoped to survive (Acts 27-30-32). Diving from God’s ark of protection into troubled seas is sheer madness inviting destruction (Genesis 7:23).

Paul was the voice of calm in the storm, as born-again believers should be by bringing the Good News of salvation by faith in the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ (1 Corinthians 15:4) as the only Way to Heaven (John 14:6). Paul promised the passengers that they would all survive, because God had told him they would. He encouraged them further by telling them to eat while they were waiting, for they had not eaten during the two-week voyage (Acts 27-33-34).

Our first priority as Christians should be to lead people to the Lord (Matthew 28:19-20), yet we should realize that they are far more likely to listen to our message if we have first loved them by attending to their physical needs (James 2:15-17). Some may belittle ministries giving food to the poor as an enticement for them to hear Gospel preaching, yet Jesus told us to provide for those in need (Mark 9:41), just as He did with the loaves and fishes (Matthew 14:14-21). As long as souls are saved to God’s glory, why should we object if their initial motive for hearing His Word was physical instead of spiritual?

Paul serving bread to the 275 other passengers was like a communion supper. He began with a promise from God; he broke the bread as Jesus did to symbolize His body that would be broken on the cross; and he gave thanks to God (Acts 27-35-37; 1 Corinthians 11:24). This reminds us to thank Him in all situations (Ephesians 5:20; 1 Thessalonians 5:18), no matter how dismal or dangerous, for He alone can and will save us (Acts 4:12).

Once they had eaten, they still had to lighten the ship by throwing the remaining wheat overboard (Acts 27:38). This in itself was an act of faith that God will provide food day by day (Psalm 37:25; Matthew 6:11), just as He gave daily manna to His children as they wandered through the wilderness (Exodus 16:15).

The next day, God showed them a narrow creek appearing to lead to a safe landing on shore, reminding me of the narrow path that leads believers to Heaven (Matthew 7:13-14) by faith in Christ alone. They raised the anchors and set sail, landing the front part of the boat firmly on shore, but the waves crashing on the rear of the ship smashed it to pieces  (Acts 27:39-41). Perhaps this is a reminder that not all who appear to be saved truly are (Luke 13:26-27), and that many church members will go to hell because they trust in their religious traditions instead of in the Savior (Mark 7:8-13).

Once again, Satan attempted to thwart God’s plan by using the soldiers, who wanted to kill the prisoners before they could swim to land and escape. But God always has a small but faithful remnant (Romans 11:5) to stand up for His cause, in this case the captain of the prison guard. He had believed in God through what Paul had said and wanted to keep him alive, so he ordered that everyone who could swim head for shore (Acts 27:42-43).

Even the passengers who couldn’t swim floated in on broken boards from the ship, and everyone got to land safely. God will always find a way to save us from the storms (Psalm 18:32), even if He has to destroy our former way of life to do it (Psalm 107:23-30). Had the ship not been wrecked, those who could not swim would have had no life preservers to float on to reach the shore of the island called Melita. (Acts 27:44-28:1)

But their problems were far from over – the island was inhabited by barbarians! Yet God even used the savages on the island to help Paul and his men, for they built a fire to keep the visitors warm (Acts 28:2). How often do we put God in a box, failing to realize He can use anyone and anything to accomplish His purposes and protect His children? (Isaiah 55:8-9)

A snake, that venomous symbol of Satan (Revelation 12:9; 20:2), came out of the fire and seized Paul’s hand. The barbarians were quick to judge and assumed that Paul must be so evil that even though he escaped the storm and shipwreck, he would now die by snakebite (Acts 28:3-4). When someone is in a serious trial, we should not assume,that God is punishing him. In fact, He may use the trial by bringing him victory, for his good and God’s glory (John 9:1-3).

With God, all things are possible! (Matthew 19:26) Paul simply shook the snake off his hand before it could bite him, and it landed in the fire before it could harm anyone else. God used this incident to show the people His great power. Initially the barbarians misunderstood and thought Paul was a god, but at least they now respected him and would listen to him as he preached the Gospel about God Himself (Acts 28:5-6).

Publius, the leader of the island, gave lodging to Paul and the others for three days. God used Paul to heal sick people on the island, including Publius’ father, by prayer and laying on of hands, to God’s glory. Grateful for the healing, the people of Melita helped Paul find a ship and gave provisions for the journey. Had Paul not been endangered by a deadly snake, the ensuing chain of events would not have led to this blessed outcome (Acts 28:7-10).

God continued to direct every step of their journey to Rome, giving Paul many opportunities to witness to different groups of people. Once in Rome, Paul was put under house arrest with only one soldier guarding him, so he could invite others to the house and tell them the good news about Jesus Christ (Acts 28:11-15).

Paul used this opportunity to witness to the Jewish leaders in Rome. He explained that he had committed no crime, yet God had allowed him to be captured and brought to Rome so that he would have this chance to tell them about Jesus. He showed them from the Scripture how Jesus fulfilled all the Old Testament prophesies about the chosen Messiah (Acts 28:11-16-23; Luke 24:27).

No doubt Paul was a Holy Spirit-inspired, brilliant, learned preacher, yet not all who heard him were converted (Acts 28:24). It is the mission of born-again believers to witness and share the Gospel, not to convert anyone, for only the Holy Spirit can change the hearts of those who hear us (John 3:5-8).

Some of the religious leaders left in anger after Paul quoted Isaiah, who prophesied that many of the Jews would be deaf, dumb and blind to the clear evidence that Jesus was the Son of God, the anointed Messiah (Isaiah 6:9; Acts 28:25-27). This should remind us not to be discouraged when those we witness to refuse to listen or even walk away, because God does not require that we be successful, but only that we be obedient.

We should not lose hope because the Holy Spirit may still be working in their hearts (Acts 28:29), and ultimately we will reap the benefit of the Word we have sowed. What a joy it will be in Heaven to meet all those to whom we witnessed, or even planted a seed of encouragement in their heart, who subsequently were saved and became part of our soulwinners’ crown! (Philippians 4:1; 1 Thessalonians 2:19)

God’s Word never returns to Him void (Isaiah 55:11). In Paul’s case, His preaching was preserved in the 14 books of the Bible he authored. While the seed he sowed may have fallen on thorny soil (Matthew 13:22) in terms of the Jews, it paved the way for salvation of the Gentiles. Because the Jews rejected Jesus as their King, His kingdom was delayed, and the Gospel of Grace allowed Gentiles to enter the family of God (Acts 28:28; 20:24).

Paul had two full years of house arrest to preach the Gospel to anyone who came to see him, and no one interfered with his preaching (Acts 28:30-31). God is so good! Only He could use a wrongful arrest, perilous voyage, shipwreck, near drowning, and attack by a lethal snake to work all things together for our good and His glory (Romans 8:28).

Not only did Paul survive with numerous opportunities to witness, but God used his plight to spread the Gospel not only to the Jews but to the Gentile nations, and to all believers who read the 15 books of the Bible he authored. May we have faith that setbacks along our journey are also blessings in disguise!

© 2015 Laurie Collett